2015 NFL Draft Outcomes

This picture hardly does it justice. The stage in Chicago’s Auditorium Theatre took on new life during the actual event. (NFL.com)

Quite some time ago, we published a mock draft for the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft, in which we looked at each team’s needs as well as the free agency signings and trades up to that point in order to decide who each team might have drafted. Our mock draft was 15.6% accurate, which is not particularly high (although is still higher than mock drafts published by at least a few writers at mainstream news outlets). Of course, some of these selections, such as Jameis Winston, Marcus Mariota, and Amari Cooper were fairly intuitive.

Many watched the NFL Draft on TV, if for no other reason than to see the new stage (this is the first year since 2006 that it was not held at Radio City Music Hall). Now that a couple of days have passed since the end of the draft, we can take a look at each team’s selections and see how they might benefit from the player they drafted. We will not just be looking at the first round, but rather at all seven. We may not mention every single player drafted, but we will do our best to account for the picks that will do the most for each team or which made the biggest stir in the press.

NOTE: There are a couple of names we’ve mentioned in the past that you will not be seeing anywhere below. First of all, Harvard OLB Zack Hodges, a player we already believed to be undervalued, was not even drafted. He has now been signed by the Indianapolis Colts.

And if you have not been keeping up with the news, you might be upset to find that LSU OT La’el Collins is also not on this list. He opted out of the draft because he would not be available due to a meeting with the police over the shooting of a pregnant woman in Baton Rouge. Don’t worry, he is not a suspect. Unfortunately, his original plan to enter the draft again in 2016 does not conform to the rules of the NFL Draft. He is now able to try his luck in free agency, rather than waiting to be assigned to a team next year.

Round One

Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. Believe it or not, two Heisman-winning QBs getting drafted first and second isn’t as common as some might think. (Brian Spurlock/USA TODAY Sports).

The 2015 NFL Draft was off the a strong start from the very beginning, when Heisman-winning QBs Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota were drafted first and second by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Tennessee Titans, respectively. While we have previously covered a couple of reasons that Jameis Winston might have some character defects that could cause trouble in the long run, his first overall selection did not surprise too many people. Mariota, who has set a record in the Pac-12 conference for getting 58 touchdowns in one season, was also not too surprising. If Mariota can maintain his current stats, and if Winston can overcome some of his character issues, both players should help their respective teams to perform a little better during the 2015-2016 season.

The third pick of the first round saw Florida DE Dante Fowler, Jr. selected by the Jacksonville Jaguars. Fowler can show impressive speed for his weight, having managed a number of sacks during his college career. This should make him a solid addition to the team. The fourth pick of the round saw the Oakland Raiders selecting WR Amari Cooper, something we had predicted in our mock draft. Not only was he the best receiver in the NCAA last year, but he should finally give current QB Derek Carr a pair of hands that’ll complement his passing game.

We hadn’t predicted the Washington Redskins drafted Iowa OT Brandon Scherff as the fifth pick overall, nor had we predicted the New York Jets acquiring USC DE Leonard Williams. Even so, both picks should fare promising for their respective teams. Washington needs a player as long and heavy as Scherff to help protect their QB on the line, and the Jets managed to nab a player with even more career sacks than Fowler. The Chicago Bears also made a solid pick in acquiring WR Kevin White, the third-best receiver in the NCAA last year.

The Atlanta Falcons decided to focus on their defense, and Clemson LB Vic Beasley has enough speed to give them the type of edge rusher they need to make a difference in the coming season. The ninth pick of the NFL draft was Miami OT Ereck Flowers, who should help protect New York Giants QB Eli Manning behind the line and strengthen the team’s passing game. The tenth pick went to the St. Louis Rams, who added the light-weight RB Todd Gurley to their roster. He’s something of a wild card in terms of personality (not to mention his recent knee surgery), but he’s proven his abilities to run the ball in the past.

The eleventh pick overall was another one that we had predicted, with Michigan State CB Trae Waynes drafted by the Minnesota Vikings. He’s one of the lightest corners around and he doesn’t have the height that some would prefer, but he was still a solid part of his defense in college and managed a few interceptions during his college career. The Cleveland Browns went for a much heavier player, DT Danny Shelton. We had guessed they might be drafting a new tackle, so hopefully Shelton will give them what they need. New Orleans went a slightly different route from Cleveland, gaining Stanford OT Andrus Peat.

We had guessed the fourteenth pick overall as well. WR Devante Parker was drafted by the Miami Dolphins. Despite missing a fair number of games in his senior year, he still managed a decent pass percentage and only dropped an average of one pass per season in his last few years. That doesn’t make him NFL-ready, but it’s certainly a promising statistic. We had no way of guessing the fifteenth pick (we made our mock draft before San Francisco traded this pick to the San Diego Chargers), but it eventually went to RB Melvin Gordon. With nearly eight yards on every carry, he should help San Diego prevent quite a few turnovers.

The sixteenth pick saw CB Kevin Johnson headed off to play ball for the Houston Texans. He’s a talented corner, having made more than forty tackles and preventing over a dozen pass completions in his last season alone. The San Francisco 49ers used the pick they’d traded with San Diego to acquire DE Arik Armstead, an impressive defensive player with way more speed than he should be able to manage at his size. The Kansas City Chiefs walked away with a somewhat riskier defensive player, CB Marcus Peters, who got the boot from his college team at Washington prior to the NFL Draft.

The Cleveland Browns had the nineteenth pick, which they used to gain C Cameron Erving. He’s a decent player, although no one’s entirely sure how much he’ll be utilized by the team. The Philadelphia Eagles made a selection that surprised us more than a little bit, drafting WR Nelson Agholor, a fleet-footed receiver who isn’t bad but who we never thought would be drafted in the first round. We also hadn’t had particularly high expectations for Texas A&M OT Cedric Ogbuehi, who just recovered from extensive surgery only to be drafted immediately by the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Pittsburgh Steelers managed to get OLB Bud Dupree, who we frankly thought would’ve been drafted earlier. With nearly two dozen sacks at Kentucky, he’ll certainly be an asset to his new team. The Denver Broncos went for DE Shane Ray, who we also expected to be a higher draft pick. While he wasn’t our actual prediction, we had mused that he might be drafted as early as eighth overall. Unfortunately, a drug citation incurred right before the NFL Draft made him something of a liability. Meanwhile, the Arizona Cardinals wound up with OT D.J. Humphries, whose height and weight should give them some power on the right side of their offensive line.

OLB Shaq Thompson has played a couple of positions over the years, so there’s no telling what the Carolina Panthers might decide to do with him. He doesn’t have quite the size that some might want from a linebacker, so there’s a chance that he might wind up playing RB (which he has done before). The Baltimore Ravens made an even more surprising pick. After going for defensive players for the past few years, they decided to draft WR Breshad Perriman, a light-weight player from Central Florida with fifty passes and more than twenty yards on just about every reception over the course of the last year. Perriman will be a huge asset to Baltimore’s passing game. The Dallas Cowboys decided to get themselves CB Byron Jones, a somewhat risky corner who has eight interceptions but who barely got to play last year due to injury.

The Detroit Lions went with Duke OG Laken Tomlinson, whose weight should make him a solid candidate for the position. The Indianapolis Colts drafted a receiver, which we had predicted, although we had not guessed that it would be WR Dorsett Phillip. Still, he’s fast and his three dozen passes for more than eight hundred yards last season speak strongly to his abilities. The thirtieth pick of the 2015 NFL Draft went to the Green Bay Packers, who drafted Arizona State DB Damarious Randall. Some are thinking that Green Bay might actually have him playing corner, although he seems a bit short for the position.

The thirty-first pick of the draft was somewhat controversial for some fans of the New Orleans Saints, who would have rather seen them keep Jimmy Graham instead of gaining this pick from Seattle. They drafted ILB Stephone Anthony, who boasted ninety tackles in the last season alone and will hopefully help the Saints recover from some crippling holes in their defense. The last pick of the first round was Texas DT Malcom Brown, who will be joining the New England Patriots as a replacement for Vince Wilfork. Brown originally played RB, but taking him on as a tackle is definitely a better move considering his impressive size and strength.

Round Two

Dorial Green-Beckham has his tongue out in every single picture we found of him from the Scouting Combine. We’re serious. Every…single…one. (Brian Spurlock/USA TODAY Sports).

While we had thought that Alabama SS Landon Collins might get drafted in the first round, he was the first to go in the second round of the NFL Draft and will now be joining the New York Giants to offer them the skilled coverage for which he is known. The thirty-fourth and thirty-fifth picks overall were OT Donovan Smith and DT Mario Edwards, Jr., who will be going to Tampa Bay and Oakland, respectively. The fourth pick of the round saw Alabama RB T.J. Yeldon headed off to Jacksonville, and the fifth pick of the round put WR Devin Smith in the hands of the New York Jets. DE Preston Smith was then drafted to the Washington Redskins as the sixth pick of the round, thirty-eighth overall.

The seventh and eighth picks of the round were somewhat surprising, simply because many had thought they would be top draft prospects for the first round of the draft. In any case, DT Eddie Goldman was drafted to the Chicago Bears and WR Dorial Green-Beckham went to the Tennessee Titans. Michigan WR Devin Funchess, who had shown up in the first round on mock drafts made by some other sites, went to the Carolina Panthers. LSU CB Jalen Collins, who had also been a potential first round prospect in the eyes of some, was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons.

The eleventh pick of the round was somewhat surprising. While not everyone thought that ILB Benardrick McKinney would be drafted in the first round, many at least thought he would be the first player drafted from Mississippi State. This was not the case, and the Houston Texans snatched him up five spots after Washington had acquired his former teammate Preston Smith.

The next few picks didn’t necessarily make quite as many waves. OLB Hau’oli Kikaha went to New Orleans, ILB Eric Kendricks went to Minnesota, SS Jaquiski Tartt went to San Francisco, and CB Eric Rowe went to Philly. San Diego then acquired ILB Denzel Perryman, and Kansas City acquired G Mitch Morse. Buffalo and Cleveland then picked up CB Ronald Darby and DE Nate Orchard, respectively.

After the above picks, the twentieth pick of the round went to the Miami Dolphins. They acquired DT/NT Jordan Phillips, who we had thought would be picked up late in the first round. We never expected the sizable and somewhat versatile tackle to be selected as late as the fifty-second overall. We had also thought that TE Maxx Williams would go in the first round, but he was drafted fifty-fifth by the Baltimore Ravens after Cincinnati acquired OT Jake Fisher and Detroit acquired RB Ameer Abdullah. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Pittsburgh acquired CB Senquez Golson a whole round earlier than we might have expected. He’s fast, but relatively inconsequential compared to some of the other corners they could have picked up.

The next few picks weren’t high on our radar. The Rams took home OT Rob Havenstein, the Cardinals acquired DE Markus Golden, and the Broncos drafted OT Ty Sambrailo. OT Randy Gregory, a qualified pass rusher who we expected to go about a quarter through the first round, was then picked up by the Dallas Cowboys. His late selection is due to concerns over drug use, although it’s hard to identify how this stands above similar character issues presented by players who were drafted much earlier.

The second round ended with C Ali Marpet joining Tampa Bay, CB Quinten Rollins joining the Green Bay Packers, DE Frank Clark signing on with the Seahawks and SS Jordan Richards drafted by the New England Patriots. Clark’s signing by the Seahawks was the real surprise here. The defensive player isn’t only stiff in his movements, but his charges of domestic violence had resulted in many teams deciding that he was too undesirable to make their selections.

Round Three

Much like Green-Beckham, Jaelen Strong has a very unique game face. Not that we’re judging. If things went our way, he would’ve been drafted on the first day. (Brian Spurlock/USA TODAY Sports).

The third round of the NFL Draft did not hold quite as many surprises as the first two. The Colts drafted CB D’Joun Smith while the Titans took on OG Jeremiah Putasi. The Jaguars also went with a guard, OG A.J. Cann, and the Raiders acquired TE Clive Walford. The Seahawks, who acquired the fifth pick of the round from the Redskins, went with Kansas State WR Tyler Lockett.

The first real surprise of the round was Arizona State WR Jaelen Strong, who went to the Houston Texans. This was not a surprise because the Texans weren’t wise to acquire him, but rather because he seemed like a strong candidate for the first round. He isn’t the fastest receiver to come out of the NCAA, but his grip and his jumping height have allowed him to complete more than 150 passes in the past two years. He may have been drafted later than he deserved, but Houston stands to benefit from his availability.

The next few picks continued without any surprises. C Hroniss Grasu went to the Chicago Bears, OT Jamon Brown went to the St. Louis Rams, and RB Tevin Coleman joined the Atlanta Falcons. The New York Giants drafted DE Owamagbe, the New Orleans Saints drafted QB Garrett Grayson, and the Kansas City Chiefs drafted WR Chris Conley. The Cleveland Browns then signed on RB Duke Johnson.

There were then two mild surprises in a row. While we had pegged CB P.J. Williams as the last pick of the first round (or at least an early pick in the second), he did not go until the fourteenth pick of the third. The New Orleans Saints will therefore be the ones to benefit from his speed and agility, not to mention his ability to overcome his blockers with relative ease. Some were also surprised to see Virginia OLB Eli Harold drafted right after him, joining the San Francisco 49ers in the third round despite many sites’ predictions that he would go much earlier.

The Detroit Lions then signed on Stanford CB Alex Carter, followed by Buffalo’s acquisition of Louisville OG John Miller. This was followed immediately by another Louisville player, OLB Lorenzo Mauldin, being drafted by the New York Jets. San Diego then drafted Texas State CB Craig Mager, and the Philadelphia Eagles drafted Texas OLB Jordan Hicks (who some had thought would be drafted a full round earlier). The Bengals drafted TE Tyler Kroft as the eighty-fifth draft pick overall, followed by the Cardinals’ acquisition of RB David Johnson.

The twenty-third pick of the round went to the Pittsburgh Steelers, who drafted Auburn WR Sammie Coates (another player who just barely fell short of our mock draft). LSU’s DE Danielle Hunter then went to Minnesota, and Oregon State’s QB Sean Mannion was drafted by the Rams. The ninetieth and ninety-first overall picks were both tackles. Iowa DT Carl Davis went to the Baltimore Ravens, while Florida OT Chaz Green went to the Dallas Cowboys. TE Jeff Heuerman then went to the Denver Broncos, DE Henry Anderson joined the Indianapolis Colts, and WR Ty Montgomery was drafted by the Green Bay Packers.

The final two regular picks were RB Matt Jones and DT Xavier Cooper, who went to the Redskins and Browns, respectively. There were then three compensatory selections. The New England Patriots used theirs to acquire Oklahoma DE Geneo Grissom. The Kansas City Chiefs also opted for defense, picking Oregon State CB Steven Nelson. The final pick of the round was TCU ILB Paul Dawson, selected by the Cincinnati Bengals.

Round Four

T.J. Clemmings at the Scouting Combine. Seriously, how is this guy not first round material? (Brian Spurlock/USA TODAY Sports)

Going into the third day of the 2015 NFL Draft, we were somewhat surprised to see that not all of the names from our first round mock draft had been selected. This was not quick to change as the Titans, Patriots and Panthers drafted DT Angelo Blackson, DE Trey Flowers, and OG Daryl Williams, respectively. The Jets then drafted QB Bryce Petty and the Jaguars drafted SS James Sample. The Redskins then took on WR Jamison Crowder and the Bears signed RB Jeremy Langford. The Falcons took the eighth pick of the round with WR Justin Hardy. The ninth and tenth picks went to the Titans and the Colts, who drafted FB Jalston Fowler and SS Clayton Geathers.

We were finally able to stop holding our breath when the Minnesota drafted OT T.J. Clemmings for the eleventh pick of the fourth round, 110th pick overall. It is possible that his late selection was due to injury concerns, although there were several players who had just recovered from surgery that were drafted well before him. His training performance will hopefully provide some insight into his potential performance over the 2015-2016 season.

After Clemmings was finally picked up, the Patriots made a pretty solid pick for the fourth round with OG Tre Jackson. Along with Trey Flowers, he should complement their team fairly well. The Redskins then drafted OG Arie Kouandjio, and the Lions took home DT Gabe Wright. This was followed by the Miami Dolphins and the Cleveland Browns, who drafted OG Jamil Douglas and SS Ibraheim Campbell. The Cardinals drafted DT Rodney Gunter, and the 49ers drafted TE Blake Bell. The nineteenth and twentieth picks of the round went to the Kansas City Chiefs and the St. Louis Rams, who acquired ILB Ramik Wilson and OT Andrew Donnal.

There weren’t too many surprises for the rest of the round. The next two selections were both corners. USC CB Josh Shaw went to Cincinnati while Ohio State CB Doran Grant went to Pittsburgh. DE Za’Darius Smith was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens, and WR Vince Mayle was drafted by the Cleveland Browns. Tampa Bay then drafted LSU OLB Kwon Alexander. The next two selections were both adequate ball carriers, with USC RB Javorius Allen drafted by Baltimore and South Carolina RB Mike Davis chosen by San Francisco. Dallas drafted ILB Damien Wilson, Oakland drafted OG Jon Feliciano, and Green Bay drafted OLB Jake Ryan.

After Seattle and New England drafted the last two regular picks (San Diego State OG Terry Poole and Georgia Tech C Shaq Mason), there were a total of five compensatory selections. The first went to San Francisco, who drafted WR DeAndre Smelter. The next went to Denver, who drafted Florida C Max Garcia. Then OG Mark Glowinski was drafted by Seattle while DE Marcus Hardison was taken in by Cincinnati. The last pick went to the Baltimore Ravens, who drafted Texas Southern CB Tray Walker.

Round Five

Grady Jarrett, pictured at the NFL Scouting Combine, is arguably one of the best players drafted in the fifth round. (Brian Spurlock/USA TODAY Sports)

The first pick of the fifth round was a good one. Clemson NT Grady Jarrett knows his way around a defensive line, something the Falcons can certainly use. Tennessee then drafted RB David Cobb, and Jacksonville took on WR Rashad Greene. The next two selections were both linebackers. Kansas ILB Ben Heeney went to Oakland, and Arkansas OLB Martrell Spaight went to Washington. Then Chicago drafted FS Adrian Amos and Minnesota drafted TE MyCole Pruitt before the New York Giants selected Texas S Mykkele Thompson. The ninth and tenth picks went to the Dolphins and the Vikings, who drafted Memphis CB Bobby McCain and Maryland WR Stefon Diggs.

Green Bay and New Orleans had the next two picks, selecting QB Brett Hundley and OLB Davis Tull. The Miami Dolphins then had two picks in a row, which they used to acquire Boise State RB Jay Ajayi and Minnesota FS Cedric Thompson. The Colts and Jets were next, choosing Stanford NT David Parry and Texas A&M OG Jarvis Harrison. The Chargers then drafted OLB Kyle Emanuel, and the Saints drafted DT Tyeler Davison. The next two teams focused on rushing and passing, with the Buffalo Bills drafting RB Karlos Williams and the Miami Dolphins drafting WR Tony Lippett.

The next few picks were no more noteworthy than any which came before them. The Bengals drafted Auburn TE C.J. Uzomah, while the Cardinals used two picks in a row to draft West Virginia DE Shaquille Riddick and UAB WR J.J. Nelson. Then the Steelers drafted TE Jesse James, and the Raiders drafted OLB Neiron Ball. Tampa Bay acquired Nebraska WR Kenny Bell, Dallas signed Purdue DE Ryan Russell, and Denver chose Tulane CB Lorenzo Doss. The 49ers opted for Clemson P Bradley Pinion (the first in his position to make the draft), and the Patriots chose Navy LS Joe Cardona. The last two regular draft picks of the round were CB Damian Swann and FB Michael Burton, who were chosen by the New Orleans Saints and the Detroit Lions, respectively.

There were then a total of eight compensatory selections. Texas State LB David Mayo went to the Panthers, Towson CB Tye Smith went to the Seahawks, and Delaware TE Nick Boyle went to the Ravens. Kansas City then drafted OLB D.J. Alexander, followed immediately by TE James O’Shaughnessy. The Panthers drafted RB Cameron Artis-Payne, the Texans drafted WR Keith Mumphery, and the Ravens finished up the round with OG Robert Myers.

Round Six

Obum Gwacham at the Scouting Combine. He was the first compensatory selection in the sixth round. (Brian Spurlock/USA TODAY Sports)

By the sixth round of the 2015 NFL Draft, there were few particularly notable players left, and what follows is unfortunately a simple list of names. The Tennessee Titans kicked things off with Louisville OLB Deiontrez Mount, and the New England Patriots followed with Mississippi State LB Matthew Wells. The Raiders then took OLB Max Valles, and the Jaguars selected DT Michael Bennett. The Redskins then had two picks in a row, selecting Virginia Tech SS Kyshoen Jarrett and Arkansas CB Tevin Mitchel. Then the Bears selected OT Tayo Fabuluje, the Buccaneers selected WR Kaelin Clay, and the Vikings chose OT Tyrus Thompson.

The next two picks were both receivers. Connecticut WR Geremy Davis went to the New York Giants, and Ohio State WR Evan Spencer went to the Washington Redskins. Then Clemson OLB Tony Steward was picked by the Bills, and Louisville CB Charles Gaines was drafted by the Browns. San Francisco drafted OG Ian Silberman, and Philadelphia drafted CB JaCorey Shepherd. This was followed by the Chargers and the Vikings, who selected DT Darius Philon and DE B.J. Dubose. The next two picks were tight ends, with Florida State TE Nick O’Leary chosen by Buffalo and Mississippi State TE Malcolm Johnson chosen by Cleveland.

The twentieth pick of the round was CB Randall Evans, chosen by the Philadelphia Eagles. He was followed by FS Derron Smith, chosen by the Cincinnati Bengals. USC TE Randall Telfer was then drafted by the Browns, and DT Walton Leterrius was chosen by the Pittsburgh Steelers. Detroit drafted Texas CB Quandre Diggs, and the Rams decided to work on the other side of their passing game with Missouri WR Bud Sasser. The Patriots took home TE A.J. Derby, and the Broncos selected NT Darius Kilgo. Then the Ravens drafted WR Darren Waller, and the Colts drafted RB Josh Robinson. The last three regular picks of the round went to Green Bay, Indianapolis, and Tennessee. They drafted FB Aaron Ripkowski, ILB Amarlo Herrera, and C Andy Gallik, respectively.

This was followed by nine compensatory selections. The first two were both defensive ends. Oregon State DE Obum Gwacham went to Seattle, while Louisiana-Lafayette DE Christian Ringo went to Green Bay. Then Houston drafted South Florida OLB Reshard Cliett, and Miami DE Anthony Chickillo went to Pittsburgh. The Green Bay Packers selected UAB TE Kennard Backman, the Seattle Seahawks chose Buffalo DT Kristjan Sokoli, and the St. Louis Rams signed Fresno State OG Cody Wichmann. The Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs had the last two picks of the round. They both went with defensive tackles, with Houston drafting Rice DT Christian Covington and Kansas City drafting Southern Mississippi DT Rakeem Nunez-Roches.

Round Seven

Gerald Christian, shown doing the dash at the Scouting Combine, was the final pick of the 2015 NFL Draft. (PhiladelphiaEagles.com)

The Oakland Raiders began the seventh round of the NFL Draft, picking Tennessee State OL Anthony Morris. They were followed by the Cleveland Browns, who picked USC ILB Hayes Pullard, and the Jacksonville Jaguars, who chose Monmouth WR Neal Sterling. The Raiders then had another pick, which they used to nab Florida WR Andre Debose. Then the Washington Redskins chose South Florida C Austin Reiter, and the New York Jets drafted Northwestern State NT Deon Simon. The Rams drafted ILB Bryce Hager from Baylor, and the Falcons drafted OT Jake Rodgers from Eastern Washington. The ninth and tenth picks of the round went to the Giants and the Rams, who drafted Florida State OG Bobby Hart and Memphis DE Martin Ifedi.

The eleventh pick of the round went to the Minnesota Vikings, who acquired Alabama OT Austin Shepherd. They were followed by the Jaguars, who drafted Notre Dame TE Ben Koyack. The Saints drafted Missouri RB Marcus Murphy, and the Buccaneers chose Hawaii FB Joey Iosefa. Then the Vikings had another pick, which they used to draft OLB Edmond Robinson from Newberry. The next two picks were both receivers. The Kansas City Chiefs drafted Northern Illinois WR Da’Ron Brown, and the Buffalo Bills drafted Central Arkansas WR Dezmin Lewis. Then the Houston Texans drafted LSU RB Kenny Hilliard, and the Dallas Cowboys drafted Wyoming OLB Mark Nzeocha. The twentieth pick of the round went to the Philadelphia Eagles, who drafted Boston College DE Brian Mihalik.

The Cincinnati Bengals took the next pick, drafting West Virginia WR Mario Alford. Then the Pittsburgh Steelers drafted Louisville FS Gerod Holliman and the Detroit Lions drafted South Carolina OT Corey Robinson. The next two picks were both corners. The Cleveland Browns drafted Oregon CB Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, a relatively aggressive corner despite his late selection in the NFL Draft. The Raiders then took on the slightly taller and heavier Kansas CB Dexter McDonald.

The Dallas Cowboys were up next, drafting Virginia Tech OT Laurence Gibson. The San Francisco 49ers drafted Florida OG Trenton Brown, and the Tennessee Titans drafted WR Tre McBride. The Cowboys were then up again, and they used their selection to draft Texas TE Geoff Swaim. They were followed by the New England Patriots, who drafted Marshall CB Darryl Roberts. The next two picks were both defensive backs. The Seattle Seahawks drafted Oregon State DB Ryan Murphy, while the Atlanta Falcons drafted San Jose State DB Akeem King.

There were then seven compensatory selections. The first three all went to the Denver Broncos. They started with Northwestern QB Trevor Siemian before drafting two defensive backs, Tulane DB Taurean Nixon and Oklahoma State DB Josh Furman. The Patriots were up next, with Alabama OLB Xzavier Dickson. Then the 49ers drafted South Carolina TE Rory “Busta” Anderson, and the Colts drafted Mars Hill OT Denzell Goode. The final pick of the round (and of the entire 2015 NFL Draft) went to the Arizona Cardinals. For the thirty-ninth pick of the round (256th overall), they selected TE Gerald Christian from Louisville.

Conclusion

And then the stage was empty again. We’ll be interested to see where the 2016 NFL Draft is held. (Adam Hunger/USA TODAY Sports)

It was a long three days, with over 250 college football players starting new careers. Those who were not drafted now have the option of trying their hand at free agency. Some have already found spots, while others are still waiting. Naturally, not everyone who entered the NFL Draft is guaranteed a spot in the league this year. Those who made it will have quite a bit of time to train, as the 2015-2016 season does not begin until the Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots face off against one another in mid-September.

That means NFL bettors will have some time to brush up on our beginner’s guide to betting football and learn which pitfalls to avoid in the months leading up to what will hopefully be an action-packed season starring a host of fresh talent. With the NBA postseason drawing to a close, sports fans will have to be content with baseball until then.